AMD, Intel Roll Out Next-Gen Chips

Advanced Micro Devices Inc. and Intel Corp. this week are rolling out enhancements to some of their processors, and OEMs are following with systems that take advantage of the upgrades.

AMD, of Sunnyvale, Calif., on Monday is rolling out the next generation of its 64-bit Opteron processors. The Model 852 is designed for four-way systems and the 252 for two-processor servers. The 152 is aimed at workstations.

The first two models will be available by the end of the month, said Ben Williams, vice president of enterprise and server/workstation business for AMD. The 152 will be available in April.

For its part, Intel, of Santa Clara, Calif., this week will introduce the latest upgrade to its Xeon DP, or dual-processor, line. Code-named Irwindale, the new chips will boast 2MB of Level 2 cache. The chips also will feature Intel's Demand-Based Switching technology, which can throttle down the processor depending on demand.